Zafèn, Haiti’s loan crowdfunding platform backed by the Fonkoze Foundation, has joined forces with Kiva to expand its crowdfunding reach and to distribute more loans to more Haitian entrepreneurs.
Zafèn was established in 2010, just months after a devastating earthquake hit Haiti, and provides low cost loans to small and growing businesses contributing to sustainable economic... Continue Reading >>

A desire for innovation and change fills the hearts of both Kiva lenders and borrowers. As part of Kiva’s work to make microfinance as innovative and impactful as possible, Kiva is excited to announce new partnerships with Indigenous Designs, Village Infrastructure, and Fledge. Unlike traditional microfinance institutions, these organizations offer unique services to individuals, communities, and companies who need it most.
Indigenous DesignsPeruWho are they? Indigenous Designs is an organic and fair trade apparel company that works... Continue Reading >>

In 2010, Haiti suffered a devastating earthquake that weakened the economy and left half the population without employment. More than four years later, Haiti continues to rebuild and jobs remain scarce.
Now you can play a role in creating sustainable, long-term recovery in Haiti through Kiva.
Kiva and Nobel Laureate Muhammad Yunus are teaming up with Kreyòl Essence, a social business, to create hundreds of long-term, quality jobs for Haitian women and small shareholder farmers through a record-breaking Kiva loan. Learn more about the loan in the video below:... Continue Reading >>

It's World Cup time and Kiva isn't immune to the excitement as people around the globe pour themselves into the jubulance of the tournament. Soccer is a uniting force in communities that often appear to be vastly different (different regions, different languages, diffferent cultures) and over the course of the tournament we'll be sharing about the role soccer plays across Kiva's diverse communities.
In Uganda, an east African country the size of Minnesota, there are 41 different languages. However, the most valuable language in which I’m fluent is not actually a language at all...

Imagine a world where you make a loan on Kiva, our Field Partners distribute that loan to the most vulnerable communities, and then take the next step to address other holistic needs of the community, like health and access to financial education.

Luckily we don’t have to imagine it. Because when you support someone on Kiva, you’re offering more than financial capital. You’re offering vital services that create lasting change in the lives of the borrower and, not only help alleviate poverty, but help them to stay out of it.

It’s hard to stand stock still at a concert when the crowd around you is enthusiastically jumping around. Eventually your traitorous foot will start tapping out a beat and before you know it you’re proving Gloria Estefan right-- the rhythm is, in fact, going to get you.

Our peers influence our actions each and everyday in a similar manner, often times giving us that extra push we need to explore and experience life to the fullest.

Community is a driving factor in many of our lives and Kiva recognizes and...

It’s been a whirlwind week here in the office as we welcomed our 24th class of Kiva Fellows to HQ. They converged from eight countries for five days of intensive training with our staff before they head out to work directly with our field partners later next week.

Kiva relies on the efforts of tremendous volunteers, including our fellows, to ensure our lenders’ capital gets to the people who need it to improve their business, families and communities.

One of the best parts of my job is talking with lenders – it’s a chance to understand what works well and where improvements are needed. We recently conducted a series of interviews and tested a couple of prototypes in connection with an initiative aimed at improving the way lenders find loans on Kiva. While no two lenders are the same, we wanted to share a few common patterns we've observed when it comes to how and why people use Kiva.

First a caveat: there is no right or wrong way to lend. Everybody has different values, feelings about risk and...

As I take a moment to reflect after my whirlwind tour of the United States over the past two months to celebrate and promote April’s Month of Microfinance, I’m blown away by the students I encountered. The young people I met were exceptional and endlessly inspiring; already making commitments, designing projects and taking action to change our world for the better.

Projects included a mobile phone app that makes ultrasounds accessible and affordable in rural Africa. It wasn’t created by a tech company or financed by a millionaire. It was created by...

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Kiva connects millions of people through lending to alleviate poverty. Read about our partners, programs and loans here. Or check out stories straight from the field on the Kiva Fellows Blog. Have questions? Send them our way at blog@kiva.org.